Bui Jones had a background in television and journalism. Based in Sydney, Australia, Bui Jones had worked with organisations such as Australia’s Special Broadcasting Service, SBS, and the Sydney Morning Herald. He had also lived in Britain, Cambodia and Thailand before.

Before the birth of Mekong Review, Bui Jones already had experience in founding magazines, having started magazines such as The Diplomat and American Review.

But what started Mekong Review was the call for contribution by the organisers of the Kampot Writers and Readers Festival in Cambodia.

I ran into two friends who were organizing the festival. They asked me to contribute something, and I said yes.”

“On my way home in a tuk-tuk, it struck me that it’s a perfect time to start a literary magazine, and the festival is three and a half weeks away, so I really have to move quickly.”

Bui Jones explained that in the publishing business, timing is everything – if you are a week too early or a week too late, you will miss the boat.

“When you see an opportunity like that, to launch a literary magazine at a reader’s festival, you just couldn’t dream of a better launchpad for it. There’s momentum, and people are excited and motivated. The festival will help promote your magazine as they promote their event, allowing you resources you might not have.

Within the next day Bui Jones had hit the ground running and formed a team. Despite the short amount of time, he was able to ‘harass’ some people for material and content.

“It was quite exceptional.”

Bui Jones recalled being in contact with someone who was reviewing a book on Henry Kissinger, a controversial American figure who was the mastermind behind the bombing of Cambodia which led to a bloody civil war.

“For a magazine coming out of the region, I feel we must have the review of the book in our first issue.”

The magazine sold about 200 copies at the festival, though Bui Jones revealed that there initially never was a plan for a second issue.

It was after seeing the popular demand and readers asking for a subscription that the following issue was made.

For Bui Jones, a literary magazine is by definition not conventional and non-conforming.

“It’s not meant to be successful and ought to have a short life because it’s meant to capture a moment or a spirit. Success is merely an accidental by product.”

He treats every as the last and pours his heart and soul in it.

To me, every issue is a minor miracle.”

A miracle indeed. In November last year, two years after its launch, the Mekong Review broadened its coverage to Malaysia and Singapore. Previously, it was covering only the five countries of the Mekong region.

“Again, this was accidental. We initially had some readers from Singapore asking for a few copies, and not long after, there were Malaysian readers who asked the same, so that got me thinking.”

Being an English language literary magazine, Bui Jones felt that sticking just to the Mekong region would see the magazine recycling its stories and ideas sooner or later.

When asked about the political climate in the Southeast Asian region, Bui Jones said that you shouldn’t anticipate them. It’s very difficult to know where the lines are.

“It’s like crossing the road in Saigon, you just have to hope for the best. I’m a political animal; politics is important to me.”

As an Asian, Bui Jones doesn’t want to cover the region’s politics from a Western perspective.

“I don’t want to harangue; I don’t want to simply drop into Phnom Penh and say ‘Oh god, this is not a democracy! It’s outrageous!’ I think the best way to cover politics is through understanding the people and the culture, allowing you to dig deeper and closer to the roots of the politics.”

He added that a lot of what we see are merely shadow play on the walls, and not the politics itself.

“It’s often this show that are lost on Western observers, because it’s not meant for them.”

In Vietnam, the Mekong Review had what Bui Jones described as an almost underground existence, where the magazine is sold under the counter.

Media crackdowns had severely reduced the number of shops selling the magazine. Currently there are only two.

“Getting the magazine around Southeast Asia is tricky. The distribution of the 2,000 something copies of the magazine throughout the Southeast Asian region can be a little bit like piracy.”

Bui Jones revealed that he even had ‘mules’ who transported the magazine by buses or ships, then leaving it on the sidewalk to be picked up.

I rely on a lot of friends to deliver the copies.”

There was this one time where he had asked a bus driver to help deliver about 200 copies of the magazine which ended up in a warehouse.

“We then had to spend three days looking for said warehouse. We never used that bus company again.”

Indeed, Bui Jones himself does his own delivery whenever he visits Malaysia. In this trip alone, he took a few hundred copies to Cambodia.

What drives him is an indomitable love for journalism.

“I absolutely love, love (journalism) to death. I think it’s a public service. We serve the readers. I do this because I feel like have to. Otherwise, I’d be doing something else, like knitting socks.”

Subscribe to the Mekong Review here. For those wanting physical copies, visit Gerakbudaya, Tintabudi and Silverfish bookstores. Follow the literary journal on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

Share:

Rate:

Facebook Comments

About The Author

Charles Chiam Chuang Chao is a Creative Writing graduate who studied in Australia for 6 years. He likes reading and watching stories with happy endings, and he writes both fiction and non-fiction, as well as some poetry. He is also an amateur photographer. He is currently exploring other forms of art media, and hopes to be a published novelist one day.

Supported by:

Sponsored

What’s On

Event Details

Peter, Ilya and Bryan are

more

Event Details

Peter, Ilya and Bryan are the best of friends. The three are working hard to make it big in the city of KL, chasing their dreams to perform on the big stage. They work hard, singing and dancing their way through each show. Throughout the journey, they have set backs but they do not give up. They cheer each other on and continue paving a way for a brighter future for themselves.

Time

Location

Event Details

After a year of Broadway

more

Event Details

After a year of Broadway music, Beethoven and Sudirman, klpac kicks of its 2018 concert season with a bold Russian programme. Music Director and Resident Conductor Lee Kok Leong leads the klpac Orchestra in A Mix of Russian featuring renowned pianist Albert Tiu. With a focus on well-known Russian repertoires such as Mikhail Glinka’s Ruslan and Lyudmila Overture, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Op. 44 and Vasily Kalinnokov’s Symphony No. 1 in G Minor, this concert is a rare chance to experience the best of Russian compositions all in one sitting.

Time

Event Details

Peter, Ilya and Bryan are

more

Event Details

Peter, Ilya and Bryan are the best of friends. The three are working hard to make it big in the city of KL, chasing their dreams to perform on the big stage. They work hard, singing and dancing their way through each show. Throughout the journey, they have set backs but they do not give up. They cheer each other on and continue paving a way for a brighter future for themselves.

Time

Location

Event Details

After a year of Broadway

more

Event Details

After a year of Broadway music, Beethoven and Sudirman, klpac kicks of its 2018 concert season with a bold Russian programme. Music Director and Resident Conductor Lee Kok Leong leads the klpac Orchestra in A Mix of Russian featuring renowned pianist Albert Tiu. With a focus on well-known Russian repertoires such as Mikhail Glinka’s Ruslan and Lyudmila Overture, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Op. 44 and Vasily Kalinnokov’s Symphony No. 1 in G Minor, this concert is a rare chance to experience the best of Russian compositions all in one sitting.

FLASH SALE: Discounts up to RM10 from March 3 – 4! Only applicable via walk-in or phone purchase.

School Booking
With every booking of 10 tickets in SINGLE transaction, 1 complimentary ticket will be provided for the chaperone teacher. Please contact Jennifer / Oxford / Vaideggy at 603 4047 9000 or email jennifer@klpac.org (Applicable for any price range / date).

FLASH SALE: Discounts up to RM10 from March 3 – 4! Only applicable via walk-in or phone purchase.

School Booking
With every booking of 10 tickets in SINGLE transaction, 1 complimentary ticket will be provided for the chaperone teacher. Please contact Jennifer / Oxford / Vaideggy at 603 4047 9000 or email jennifer@klpac.org (Applicable for any price range / date).

Time

Location

Event Details

No microphones. No speakers. No

more

Event Details

No microphones. No speakers. No cables. No extensions. Malam Sayu Berpuisi is raw and wild just like the night.
Held outdoors in the nights under a banyan tree at The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, you will find poets accompanied by live improvised music by Feel Tu Penting.
No, the poets will not be reading from a piece of paper or from their phones. They will be performing the poems. Entry is free, but there’ll be a beggar going around seeking contributions to support the artistes.
Please bring your own raincoat or umbrella in case it rains. For those who don’t, a giant banana leaf will be provided.

Time

Location

Event Details

We turn the clock back

more

Event Details

We turn the clock back in time to bring you timeless classics by Nat King Cole, The Platters, Doris Day, The Drifters, Cliff Richard, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, The Hollies and many more. Pentas 2 will be transformed into a lounge. Relax and unwind to the tunes of Fly Me to the Moon, Only You, Stupid Cupid, Oh Carol, Yesterday Once More and Hey Jude sung by a whole host of singers backed by 4-piece band and string trio.

FLASH SALE: Discounts up to RM10 from March 3 – 4! Only applicable via walk-in or phone purchase.

School Booking
With every booking of 10 tickets in SINGLE transaction, 1 complimentary ticket will be provided for the chaperone teacher. Please contact Jennifer / Oxford / Vaideggy at 603 4047 9000 or email jennifer@klpac.org (Applicable for any price range / date).

Time

Location

Event Details

We turn the clock back

more

Event Details

We turn the clock back in time to bring you timeless classics by Nat King Cole, The Platters, Doris Day, The Drifters, Cliff Richard, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, The Hollies and many more. Pentas 2 will be transformed into a lounge. Relax and unwind to the tunes of Fly Me to the Moon, Only You, Stupid Cupid, Oh Carol, Yesterday Once More and Hey Jude sung by a whole host of singers backed by 4-piece band and string trio.

Time

Location

Event Details

We turn the clock back

more

Event Details

We turn the clock back in time to bring you timeless classics by Nat King Cole, The Platters, Doris Day, The Drifters, Cliff Richard, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, The Hollies and many more. Pentas 2 will be transformed into a lounge. Relax and unwind to the tunes of Fly Me to the Moon, Only You, Stupid Cupid, Oh Carol, Yesterday Once More and Hey Jude sung by a whole host of singers backed by 4-piece band and string trio.

FLASH SALE: Discounts up to RM10 from March 3 – 4! Only applicable via walk-in or phone purchase.

School Booking
With every booking of 10 tickets in SINGLE transaction, 1 complimentary ticket will be provided for the chaperone teacher. Please contact Jennifer / Oxford / Vaideggy at 603 4047 9000 or email jennifer@klpac.org (Applicable for any price range / date).

Time

Location

Event Details

We turn the clock back

more

Event Details

We turn the clock back in time to bring you timeless classics by Nat King Cole, The Platters, Doris Day, The Drifters, Cliff Richard, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, The Hollies and many more. Pentas 2 will be transformed into a lounge. Relax and unwind to the tunes of Fly Me to the Moon, Only You, Stupid Cupid, Oh Carol, Yesterday Once More and Hey Jude sung by a whole host of singers backed by 4-piece band and string trio.

Time

Location

Event Details

We turn the clock back

more

Event Details

We turn the clock back in time to bring you timeless classics by Nat King Cole, The Platters, Doris Day, The Drifters, Cliff Richard, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, The Hollies and many more. Pentas 2 will be transformed into a lounge. Relax and unwind to the tunes of Fly Me to the Moon, Only You, Stupid Cupid, Oh Carol, Yesterday Once More and Hey Jude sung by a whole host of singers backed by 4-piece band and string trio.